Hi,

I was going to start with an agency but eventually decided against it based on a number of factors (that I can get into if you like!)  I got a referral from a outreach centre for sex workers in my city.  If you don't have one of those I would consider asking the agencies questions such as whether you have to pay a security deposit up front (you shouldn't), what percentage of your earnings is kept by the house, what process  they use to screen clients, are you free to refuse a service if you get a bad vibe, whether you have control over the number of clients you see during your shift, whether you have to pay for your pictures for the website....I can't think of anything else right now but there is certainly more. 

When I started looking I just called around and asked questions.  Some people refused to answer any questions.  They just wanted to get me in the door and working right away.  Of course, I would steer well clear of those ones.  Even though I found a great agency in the end, I still opted to go independent because when it comes down to it, agencies take a significant chunk of your earnings for the administrative/security work that you can probably do yourself.  Even the good ones will try to convince you that they're looking out for you but I don't trust them as much I as trust myself.

Hope that helps a bit!

Cece